Fourteen attorneys
general sent a letter [PDF] of support to senators Dick Durbin, of Illinois and Tom
Harkin, of Iowa, as well as representative Elijah Cummings of Maryland for
their efforts in introducing the Proprietary Education Oversight Coordination
Improvement Act in the Senate and House back in April.

The AGs are from a
diverse group of states- Arkansas, Connecticut, Illinois, Iowa, Kentucky,
Maine, Maryland, Mississippi, Missouri, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon,
Pennsylvania and Tennessee

Wisconsin’s AG, J.B. Van
Hollen, is absent from this list despite the fact that thousands of students
from Wisconsin have accumulated huge debts attending for-profit colleges and many
of these schools have abysmal job placement and graduation rates. The Wisconsin’s Education
Approval Board attempted to pass state standards for these schools in 2011, but their efforts
were undermined by intense industry opposition and Governor Walker’s decision
to dismiss three members of the governing Board.

The issue emerged in
Wisconsin’s Attorney General race last week during a debate. When asked what they would change
if elected, Jefferson County DA and Democratic candidate for AG, Susan Happ,
said she would aggressively prosecute for-profit colleges that engaged in
fraudulent activity while Brad Schimel, the Waukesha County DA and Republican
candidate, said he would not.

The Ag’s letter
released Tuesday, October 7th said the that the proposed Act “is
both timely and necessary as each of our offices have encountered far too many
former and current for-profit school students who have been harmed by the
dishonest and unethical practices of some for-profit institutions.”

The group says passage
of the Act, which would create an interagency oversight committee to improve
enforcement of federal laws and regulations as they pertain to the industry,
will provide a mechanism to hold for-profit schools accountable for accepting
billions of dollars in taxpayer money.

“There are some
schools within the for-profit college industry that are more interested in
getting their hands on federal student loan dollars than in educating
students,” Kentucky Attorney General Jack Conway says in a news release.
“The for-profit college industry lacks real oversight and accountability at the
federal level, and this legislation will help prevent future abuses of the
student loan system and keep for-profit schools honest.”

The committee would
work with attorneys general at the state level to coordinate federal and state
activities related to the for-profit college industry. Currently, several
states, including Kentucky and California, are party to lawsuits against
proprietary colleges for misleading students about job placement rates.

The group applauded
the proposed bill’s proactive stance by warning prospective students about
specific, allegedly predatory schools.

Each year the
committee established under the bill would publish a warning list of schools
that have engaged in illegal activities, had programs withdrawn or suspended
and or have been proven to engage in abuse, unethical, fraudulent or predatory
practices. The measure would arm students with information that could prevent
them from falling into the debt-trap that has become the for-profit college
industry.

“State Attorneys
General across the country hear complaints from students who have attended
for-profit schools,” the letter of support states. “The students are drowning
in debt because they have huge student loan liabilities and no job to show for
those huge debts.”

There have been
several high-profile events and reports regarding the for-profit industry since
the bills introduction several months ago.

Back in September, the Consumer
Financial Protection Bureau announced it was suing CCI for
allegedly duping tens of thousands of student into taking out costly predatory,
and often financially devastating student loans. The suit seeks to halt CCI’s
practices and provide relief to students who have collectively taken out $569
million in school issued private student loans.

The Proprietary
Education Oversight Coordination Improvement Act currently awaits the
consideration from Health, Education, Labor and Pension committee in the Senate
and consideration from the Higher Education and Workforce Training committee in
the House.